Context-based interactive plush toy

• US 8,568,189 B2
• Filed: 11/25/2009
• Issued: 10/29/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/25/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hallmark Cards Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Hallmark Cards Incorporated
• Inventors: Garbos, Jennifer R., Bodendistel, Timothy G., Friedmann, Peter B.
• Primary Examiner(s): HARPER, TRAMAR YONG
• Application Number:
  US12/625,977
• Publication Number:
  US 20110124264A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,434 Days
• Field of Search: 446/175, 446/397
• US Class Current: 446/175
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 2200/00 Computerized interactive toys, e.g. dolls
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 3/28 Arrangements of sound-producing means in dolls; Means in dolls for producing sounds
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 33/38 Picture books with additional toy effects, e.g. pop-up or slide displays picture books B42D1/00

Abstract

An interactive toy for interacting with a user while a story is being read aloud from a book or played from a movie/video. The toy includes a speech recognition unit that receives and detects certain triggering phrases as they are read aloud or played from a companion literary work. The triggering phrase read aloud from the book or played in the movie/video may have independent significance or may only have significance when combined with other phrases read aloud from the book or played in the movie/video.

Claims

1. A method of interacting with a user, wherein a toy responds to the user as the user reads a book, the method comprising:

receiving, by a processor of the toy, a first plurality of audible sounds from the user, wherein the first plurality of audible sounds correspond to text read aloud from the book that contains at least one triggering phrase and at least one non-triggering phrase, the at least one triggering phrase and the at least one non-triggering phrase combine to form a narrative in the book that describe a sequence of fictional or non-fictional events;

using at least the processor to perform a step of analyzing the first plurality of audible sounds to detect the at least one triggering phrase and the at least one non-triggering phase; and

upon detecting the at least one triggering phrase and the at least one non-triggering phrase, using at least the processor to perform a step of activating a first responsive program, wherein the responsive program is associated with the combination of the at least one triggering phrase and the at least one non-triggering phrase and supplements the narrative in the book.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by the processor of the toy, a second plurality of audible sounds from the user, wherein the second plurality of audible sounds correspond to text read aloud from the book that contains at least one additional triggering phrase and at least one additional non-triggering phrase, wherein the at least one additional triggering phrase and the at least one additional non-triggering phrase combine to continue the narrative in the book formed by the at least one triggering phrase and the at least one non-triggering phrase;

using at least the processor to perform a step of analyzing the second plurality of audible sounds to detect the at least one additional triggering phrase and the at least one non-triggering phase; and

upon detecting the at least one additional triggering phrase and the at least one non-triggering phrase, using at least the processor to perform a step of activating a second responsive program, wherein the second responsive program supplements the narrative in the book.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the second responsive program and the first responsive program are the same.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein analyzing the second plurality of audible sounds to detect the at least one additional triggering phrase includes:

parsing at least a portion of the second plurality of audible sounds into one or more constituent phonemes; and

comparing the one or more constituent phonemes of the at least a portion of the second plurality of audible sounds against one or more constituent phonemes of the at least one additional triggering phrase.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein analyzing the first plurality of audible sounds to detect the at least one triggering phrase includes:

parsing at least a portion of the first plurality of audible sounds into one or more constituent phonemes; and

comparing the one or more constituent phonemes of the at least a portion of the first plurality of audible sounds against one or more constituent phonemes of the at least one triggering phrase.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one triggering phrase is selectively placed among a plurality of non-triggering phrases in the book by placing the at least one triggering phrase at a beginning of a sentence, wherein the sentence comprises the at least one triggering phrase and the at least one non-triggering phrase.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one triggering phrase is selectively placed among a plurality of non-triggering phrases in the book by placing the at least one triggering phrase at an end of a sentence, wherein the sentence comprises the at least one triggering phrase and the at least one non-triggering phrase.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one triggering phrase is selectively placed among a plurality of non-triggering phrases in the book by placing the at least one triggering phrase in a clause of a sentence, wherein the sentence comprises the at least one triggering phrase and the at least one non-triggering phrase.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one triggering phrase is selectively placed among a plurality of non-triggering phrases in the book by placing the at least one triggering phrase at the end of a page in the book.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein activating the first responsive program comprises activating an audio file.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein activating the first responsive program comprises activating a movement program, wherein at least a portion of the toy moves in response to activating the movement program.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein activating the first responsive program comprises activating a lighting program, wherein at least a portion of the toy lights up in response to the lighting program.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein activating the first responsive program comprises communicating data to one or more devices.